Turkey releases audio of warning to Russian jet

Turkish warplanes shot down a Russian jet, sparking a diplomatic crisis.Reuters

Turkey has released what it says is an audio recording of a warning to a Russian airplane given prior to shootingdown the jet earlier this week.

The claim follows a war of words between Russia and Turkey over the incident. The audio, released by the Turkish military yesterday, features a voice saying: "Change your heading".

Both pilots parachuted to escape the burning plane, but one is said to have been killed by gunfire. The other is safe. According to Russian media reports, this pilot says the plane was not in Turkish airspace and that they did not receive a warning from the country.

The clash is significant as Turkey is a NATO member, and any escalation of hostility between the two countries could affect Russia's relationship with the West, as well as military strategy within Iraq and Syria to fight Isis.

President Vladimir Putin has said that the attack on a Russian plane was a "stab in the back" by "the accomplices of terrorists". There has been no apology from the Turkish government.

In response, Russia has sent a missile defence system to the region, and heavily bombed rebel-held areas near where the plane was downed.